Mideast situation/Lebanon – Letter from Lebanon

Letter dated 1 March 1990 from the Chargé d'affaires a.i. of the

Permanent Mission of Lebanon to the United Nations addressed to

the Secretary-General

On instructions from my Government, and further to our previous letters concerning persistent Israeli assaults on the integrity of Lebanon's territory and of its territorial waters, I have the honour to inform you as follows:

For more than two weeks now, Israeli military craft have been enforcing a naval blockade on the coast of Lebanon and controlling the movement of shipping inside its territorial waters.  They are preventing merchant vessels carrying essential and urgently needed supplies, such as household gas, gasoline and diesel oil, from unloading their cargoes in the port of Zahrani, which is located on Lebanon's southern coast near the city of Sidon, and forcing them to proceed to the port of Tripoli in the extreme north of the country.  This is causing acute living and economic problems to Lebanese citizens, over and above the daily torment that they suffer because of the prevailing situation and the severity of a cold winter.

As part of these unwarranted Israeli practices, Israeli military craft have prevented the ships Pauline and Adriatique, carrying household gas and gasoline, from unloading their cargoes in the port of Zahrani.  A few days ago, they also prevented a ship loaded with diesel oil from unloading its cargo at the electric power station at Jiyyeh.

The Lebanese Government, in deprecating these practices and condemning the persistence of these hostile actions, which constitute a flagrant violation of all codes of law and are incompatible with all concepts of sovereignty and the inviolability of Lebanese territorial waters, calls for your speedy intervention with the Israeli authorities with a view to halting these practices.  It reserves its right to call for a meeting of the Security Council to consider the situation arising out of these actions, which constitute a threat to regional and international peace and security.

I should be grateful if you would have this letter circulated as e document of the General Assembly, under item 35 of the preliminary list, and of the Security Council.

(Signed)  Chawki CHOUERI

Ambassador

Charge d'affaires a.i.

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